Today (and hopefully more frequently) "everyone" talks about the poor, and inequality. But has anyone really listened yet, except the people who look for direct contact with the poor?
I myself have never been to a poorer country than Turkey, but I am one of those who talk about and study international development topics.
So where is my credibility?
I believe there is none, except that bit I have been thought by people, who where active in those countries.
But is that worth anything?
I do not know the answer.
But, in order to reduce this talk about "the others", the Blog Action Day is a great start, because hopefully a lot of bloggers will be from “those” countries.
But I want to go even further.
One of the oldest development strategies, is to say "they have to be educated", in order to "develop".
I have to agree with one aspect of this statement; that information is essential.
But I find it kinda pervert that it is always the other way around.
Okay, one may say that there are enough magazines & journals, etc. around which concentrate on "their" needs.
But again, most of the time "we" talk about "them".
Why is there no humanitarian organization, no support from the "developing countries", for newspapers and magazines by the "developed countries"? We should listen and learn from them, to understand their needs better!
I propose, that we should finance, that the “developed countries” and their people read more newspapers DIRECTLY from other countries, not indirectly.
By that I hope to see a way to build up a bottom-up awareness culture, and not a top-down awareness culture, as it is already the case with the whole "developed countries" information and internet culture, where a lot of mighty awareness is created, often called the “civil society”, which we put so much hope into.
But just imagine, if we would support all their medias, and thus bring forth a similar growth of information flow, as for example we bloggers enjoy.
I myself find it the most important thing, to raise awareness, because only then technology and social concepts, can be interpreted and implemented into regional and specific problems, projects, etc., thus situations with the topic of poverty.
But as I said, the “developed countries” should raise first their awareness, and they should be the ones, who should be educated. But as long we just listen to our own peers, even if it is in a good intention, will not help anything. We should help "the others", that we, and the normal human in the "west" are able to listen, and feel their needs in our everyday life, as part of our morality.
At the same time I deeply whish, that such an information culture, in "those" countries also generates knowledge about their own interdependencies, and also creates even greater awareness about their own situation, and the ways to solve it, by the means of all sciences and crafts.
As I said in the begging, I do not have any credibility to talk about “them”, but I have, when talking about “us”, and how we fit in, in this global interdependency. Thus I see one most important aspect to work on, that we even widen our global awareness. As I proposed, I would see a great opportunity to achieve this, by listening more to “them”, and actively support their voice to be published and read in our little-“developed world”-capsular.
My preferred way would be in schools, in the internet, by participating projects like the Blog Action Day, and by art capable to reach the masses, as people like the Life8 concerts, and artists like Michael Jackson, who are symbol for the normal people, who struggle with their own life’s, but at the same time have this symbol, who show them what is worth of attention.
With these words I close, and I wish you a creative day, and spread all those words of enthusiastic people.
Enrich the world, till it is a better one, never give up, we can do it, together!
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